Slashdot Mirror
Getting Off NetHack?
thetan asks: "Like a lot of Slashdot readers, I've played a little NetHack as a teenager. Alright, quite a lot - but it was no big deal and I just sort of grew out of it. Now I'm not proud of this, but I got my gf hooked and she's been using daily for a few years now. After she tired of the game, I tried sating the monkey on her back with new fixes like Angband and ADOM. Now, I no longer want be a party to her addiction and self-destruction. She acknowledges the problem but is not yet ready to take that first step. What can I do to help ween her off? Could interactive fiction act as a methadone - or does it result in just as much harm? What other strategies have users employed to get clean? Does anyone know of NetHack addiction support groups or a 12-step? I'm desperate to get her back!"
The fact that you've found a girl who doesn't get that weird look in her eye when you tell her your playing Nethack is not something to be overlooked. An above poster is on the right track: Don't try to fight it, build on it. Get her into MUDs, maybe buy her Neverwinter Nights and find a few persistent world servers she can try out, introduce her to MMORPGs if she's doing well on lighter stuff.
See, by trying to break her of video games, you're basically trying to create a typical girlfriend. If you succeed, it'll only be a matter of time before she starts complaining that you spend more time raiding with your guild than you do taking her out, or that you should find a more grown-up hobby than games. Before you know it, you'll be married and your video games will be up in a garage sale like so many gamers before you.